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Server Types
Choosing a server when you begin playing can make or break how you experience the game. Below you will overviews of the types of servers offered in EQ2, with a larger section devoted to the Time-Locked Expansion servers, due to the unusual approach to game play instituted on those servers. Overview *For a list of current servers see the Current Servers category page. *For live status of servers, see Official Server Status on Daybreak's website. :*Please note that the time of day/night, special events, or scheduled server downtime can all impact the low/medium/high population status and may not be indicative of each server's typical activity. For example, if an intern trips over the cord and unplugs Skyfire, that server's population may be listed as low, even though it is normally a high population server. New players may want to create an account on the forums to ask for server recommendations based on their desired play style, etc. *Elective character transfers have been offered off and on during the life of the game. At times these were done only by contacting Daybreak customer service, but now are (usually) available for purchase through the Marketplace. Some restrictions on which servers one can transfer to and from may apply. During server consolidations in 2015-16, players were granted a free transfer token to use for a limited time. Traditional Player vs. Player *'Limits based on account type: none. Multiple servers of this type can be chosen by all players.' PvP servers are those on which a player may openly attack other players at will. On PvP servers this sort of battle has consequences that go beyond armor repair. *As interest in PvP is limited and Battlegrounds (instances) were introduced, most PvP servers have merged over the years. *''Note: org. author of this page is not a PvP player and PvP servers may have been eliminated - with the exception of the Time-locked option described below.'' Please update this section with any free-for-all-PvP servers that still exist that are not TLE. Player vs. Environment *'Limits based on account type: none.' On servers of this type, players can only battle monsters at-will and each other in short, simple, no-consequence duels only if and when they are willing. *This server type is the most popular and the most common. Roleplay *'Limits based on account type: none.' Roleplay is when one or more players acts as if they are the character they are playing in the game world. In short, it is when you write a stroy that suits the Everquest 2 world of Norrath in real-time and over time as you play in the world and interact with others. While EQ2 has RP servers, RP is not strictly enforced as it may be in some other games and you will find non-RP players in the community too. The best way to find fellow RP enthusiasts is to create a character on a RP server and look for guilds who focus on that activity. *This server type is officially designated but not policed as RP. The community for RP is quite strong, making RP servers a place with a steady population, even though there are fewer servers of this type. *Antonia Bayle was the first RP server and is the only one remaining. Lucan D'Lere was the second; it opened shortly after launch but was merged with Crushbone in 2011. Progression (Time-Locked) *'Limits based on account type: an All Access (paid) account is required.' Time-locked Expansion servers (TLE servers) differ from all other servers in that players get to choose when content from the expansions unlocks by a vote. As of the launch of these servers, the vote is held in-game in the form of a mailed poll. TLE servers have one PvE and one PvP option. :Due to this difference, it is highly likely that TLE servers may not have the same quests, the same rules for some gameplay aspects like mounts, for world travel and more as other servers as described by this wiki. *The time-locked servers are only accessible to players with a All Access (paid) membership. *These are not pure legacy servers with all old rulesets in place; rather they offer an experience similar to "vanilla" EQ2. For example there are no "corpse runs" and no crafting subcomponents. Instead, there are no features like Battlegrounds, no veterans bonuses, and mounts have the old speed limitations. The intent is to offer a slow progression through old content for those who have a nostalgia about older content and zone or those who missed it the first time that want to experience it as it is released to the whole server. *While the Veteran's Rewards accessed with /claim are not included on the TLE servers, the Marketplace is a part of these servers. Content Limitations to Unlock *Exp01: Desert of Flames, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 60, Guild Level Cap Increased to 60 *Exp02: Kingdom of Sky, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 70, Alternate Advancement Subclass Window unlocked with a 50 AA cap, Guild Level Cap Increased to 70 *Exp03: Echoes of Faydwer, AA Class Tree Unlocked, AA Cap is Raised to 100, Tinkering, Transmuting, and Adorning Unlocked *Exp04: Rise of Kunark, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 80, AA Cap is Raised to 140, Guild Level Cap Increased to 80, Guild Halls *Exp05: The Shadow Odyssey, AA Shadows Tree Unlocked, AA Cap is Raised to 200 *Exp06: Sentinel's Fate, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 90, AA Cap is Raised to 250, Guild Level Cap Increased to 90 *Exp07: Destiny of Velious, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 92, AA Heroic Tree Unlocked, AA Cap is Raised to 300, Flying, Leaping and Gliding Mounts *Exp08: Age of Discovery, AA Cap is Raised to 320, Mercenaries, Apprentices, Reforging *Exp09: Chains of Eternity, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 95, Prestige Window Unlocked, Guild Level Cap Increased to 95 *Exp10: Tears of Veeshan, AA Dragon Tree Unlocked, AA Cap is Raised to 350 *Exp11: Altar of Malice, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 100, Prestige Class Tree is Unlocked, Guild Level Cap Increased to 100, Legendary, Fabled and Mythical crits Since the release of the server, there have been changes with regards to when certain features were made available: *Guild Halls were not released with Rise of Kunark, and Daybreak has indicated that it is unlikely that they will be made available in the future. *Leaping and gliding mounts were enabled with the Rise of Kunark expansion being unlocked. *The guild level cap was removed in the middle of the Rise of Kunark expansion, and currently there are guilds over level 100 on the server. Time-Locked Differences in Detail TLE servers have been very popular, so the limits have and may change based on the specific servers. Below you'll find the orignial rule-set differences on TLE servers. Check the SOE site for any newer TLE servers with new rules. :On most TLE Servers: *Only All Access Members will be able to create characters and log into the TLE-Servers. *There will only be ground mounts and they will have reduced ground speed. The highest mount speed was originally set to 29% and then increased to 44%. *A new queue system for logging into the servers *No Veteran Rewards or Veteran experience bonus. *No Recruit a Friend *Limited /claims. Claimed items are restricted to a subset of items available up to the current expansion unlocked on the server. *Loyalty System and daily quests are locked to Chains of Eternity expansion. *Legendary, Fabled and Mythical crits will be locked to Altar of Malice Expansion. *No dungeon finder *Level agnostic dungeons will be locked to an undetermined expansion feature. *All races are playable at launch. Players still need to purchase races they don’t own if they’d like to play Aerakyn and Freeblood. *Beastlords are locked to Age of Discovery and Channeler’s are locked to Tears of Veeshan expansions. *Re-forging, Mercenaries, and Tradeskill apprentices will be locked to Age of Discovery. *Mercenaries may or may not return to PvP, this will most likely become a poll in the future. *Guidhalls are not available on the server. *Marketplace will be highly restricted and polls will be done to determine what will be available. Experience potions are NOT available, however adventure and tradeskill vitality potions were added shortly after launch. *Experience penalty will be returned to launch levels of experience gain *Dropped coin has been returned to launch levels of coin gain. *Coin rewards for repeatable quests has been reduced. *Adventure packs are linked to the expansion after they were launched. *Content that was added between expansions, such as the Shard of Hate and Ward of Elements, is typically voted on separately rather than being unlocked with the expansion. PvP Time-Locked Differences The PvP TLE server Deathtoll was merged with the PvE TLE server Stormhold on April 5th, 2016. There are no longer any EverQuest II servers with a PvP ruleset. Free Trade Server *'Limits based on account type: an All Access (paid) account is required.' In June of 2016, a new server type was added only for those with (paid) All Access accounts. As of Oct. 2016, there is only one server of this type. The official announcement described it as such: :"Isle of Refuge is what we call a “Free Trade Server.” This means that almost all items can be traded freely between players. There are a few exceptions – Heirloom items purchased via a merchant or in the marketplace, granted from repeatable quests, or received via /claims will remain Heirloom." The following limitations apply: *As of the launch of this server type lacked Battlegrounds (instanced PvP) *Limited /claim items from various sources, like Veteran Rewards *Initially, transfers of any type were prohibited, but as of Oct. 2016, one-way transfer token to this server can be purchased via the Marketplace. *Initially, transfers away from this server were not possible, but as of August 2017, transfer tokens away from the server may be purchased after a 30 day cooldown period. https://forums.daybreakgames.com/eq2/index.php?threads/update-notes-tuesday-august-22-2017.580403/ *Also in August 2017, the portion of status that is contributed to guild leveling has been permanently multiplied by 5 on the Isle of Refuge server. Event Server *'Limits based on account type: an All Access (paid) account is required.' In July of 2016, a the Race to Trakanon server was added only for those with paid accounts. As of Oct. 2016, there is only one server of this type. This server was set at the Rise of Kunark expansion and players were invited to "race" to achieve certain benchmarks to earn items like special adornments, charms, and titles. The biggest goal was to defeat the epic dragon, Trakanon in three months or less of the server "going live". In essence, this server straddles the line between a normal server and the TLE (Time Locked Expansion) servers, in that it applies limits that some players may consider appealing. The old style starter zones (Queen's Colony and Overlord's Outpost) (like the Isle of Refuge) and limitations on adventure class that were once tied to city alignment on all servers are implemented on this server again. Instead of the Daily Objective System, a tab Journal also has Missions, which are tasks to complete in a limited time span (e.g. participate in a group in a specific zone within 2 days). :Limitations The following is taken directly from the official announcement about the Race to Trakanon server: To keep things interesting during the Race to Trakanon, there are additional special server rules. *Reduced experience rates *Increased encounter difficulty *Limited Marketplace :*The Marketplace will be similar to what items are offered on the TLE server Stormhold. The major exception will be that items from the consumables/experience category will not be available for purchase on the Race to Trakanon server. The Beastlord and Channeler classes will not be available *Mount speed reduction *NO experience bonuses for max characters on account *NO Veteran Claims *NO Guildhalls *NO Battlegrounds server access *NO Live Events (City Festivals, Tinkerfest, etc.) *NO Tradeskill writs Test Servers There are two types of servers used to test game content. :Please inquire about accessing these server while in-game or on the forums as rules for accessing them and the steps to do so may change at any time. Public Test *'Limits based on account type: an All Access (paid) account is required.' Test is what it sounds like: a server where players test content before it goes live. This is reserved for smaller patches, event content, and (typically) content that is not tied to payment to access it. Large-scale content like expansions or other paid adventure packs are only added to the Beta test server described below. Characters created on Public Test do not count toward you character limits, but bear in mind that this server is more prone to the following: *Bugs, since new content is tested here on a regular basis *Changes to introduced/tested content based on player feedback and bug reporting *A smaller community, due to the conditions above *A community that expects its members to be good citizens who take the time to use /bug to report bugs and give feedback both in game and on the Test forums. Only those committed to actually testing should create a character here. As such a few guilds there are designed specifically to this purpose. *Extreme inflation or deflation, as some items are in greater demand there, while others are not in demand at all. For example, you may need to craft all of your own gear and spells there as they may never show up on the broker if they are older gear/spells. *Public test is a persistent server, meaning that any character created there will remain there. Beta :See the Beta Testing Expansions page for details on copying a character and other general info about the Beta server. *'Limits based on account type: an All Access (paid) account is required.' :*'Pre-order purchase of content (like expansions) may be required as well.' This server functions in a manner similar to Test, but players are able to (usually) able auto-level a character for the purposes of running content that's added at (typically) higher levels, as well as, the ability to "copy" any of your charcaters over for the purpose of testing content. For example, you may want to test your (already) max Monk in new gear while still having gear you earned previously on a live server. If you created and auto-leveled a new monk to test the new content, you would not have any old gear to compare it to, and so on. *Beta is not a persistent server, meaning that all characters copied or created there are "wiped" (deleted) on a regular basis, generally after the new content launches on live servers. Server Consolidations and Merges Over many years, the populations of some servers were combined in the process of mergers. Merges are when the population of one server is moved to an existing server. In 2015 and 2016, several consolidations were carried out. Consolidation is when two or more populations are moved to an new server. In the past, free-to-play accounts and "silver" accounts replaced the free trial to invite new players to try the game. Such accounts were heavily restricted and limited to a single server (once called Freeport, now part of the Skyfire server), but this rule was changed to allow population growth to all servers and all players who wished to return to access characters they created in years past. Those looking to play for free can now create on most servers. Consolidations Once the heaviest restrictions were lifted on free-to-play accounts, many servers were also consolidated to bring up the overall population on those which had no free-to-play accounts. *Several US servers were consolidated in 2015. See the Servers category page to see if your old server was consolidated into another. *In March of 2016, the EU, Russian, and Japanese servers were consolidated. :Character Names Due to overlapping names during merges, existing characters may have found they had a Z or X at the end of their name when they logged in again. Those who find their characters renamed can use /rename once to choose a new name. To learn more about the general the consolidation process, including how name retention was prioritized, see the official announcement about the 2015-16 process. :For a breakdown of account types (free vs. paid membership) and the benefits of paying to play, see the Free-To-Play page. Other Server Info The servers available to you are based on your location and language choice. You can switch which servers you see and access by changing the Language option in the game launcher. Bear in mind that you must also have the appropriate account type etc. to create characters on some servers (like the TLE) *Over the years some servers were merged to keep the population at active levels that best served the community. Such merges occurred in 2010 and 2015. Should you find yourself returning after many years away and your character has the letter z'' or ''x added to the end of your name, you were moved during the 2015 server merges. The same holds true for guilds with duplicate names. See the Official Daybreak post on how to rename your character and/or guild after the 2015 merges. *The Exchange server type (that once allowed use of real-world money to buy/sell items) was retired and those servers were merged with other servers *A single Prison server, Drunder (Server), was created to contain misbehaving players who use "bots" and otherwise violate the game rules. As of it's 2015 launch it is a one-way ticket server with zero customer service and it requires a paid account. Info Sources The info about Time Locked servers on this page was adapted from two official Daybreak announcements: *The TLE (Time-locked expansion) server announcement *The official TLE FAQ at launch Info about the Prison server is based on info from EQ2 Wire's post, The Prison Server Experiment Category:Servers